Music & Arts — Attraction in Greenbelt

Halfway decent selection of drumsticks, and the prices remind me of Radio Shack. The employee was top notch; greeted me, then when I told him what I was looking for and found out it, he left me alone to look at it. I've worked nearly 20 years of retail, and in my opinion that's exactly how to keep the customer happy. In fact, this is one way that my experience was the opposite of how I remember Radio Shack, who were trained to be pushy on every little item, giving arbitrary reasons for buying other stuff, it's infuriating to some people, but we have to be polite. This guy did it right.

Had I bought something ($15 for drumsticks now? Inflation, I guess, but that still seems expensive..), I wouldn't be too upset about an upsell that's related to what I was buying, but I'm pretty sure from my experience in retail that most people don't like to be upsold -- which somehow these retail executives won't accept for whatever reason -- like as if their excuse to keep a policy of upselling is that people aren't angry enough about it.

I don't know what they're doing to keep the lights on, but it seems like they're supplying the bare minimum for the local middle and high schools. It's great for when you want some wood tipped Vic Firth 2B drumsticks (please order more nylon, some of us prefer nylon tipped, their bin for this exact stick showed one pair of nylon tipped sticks, and the rest was a nearly full bin of wood tipped Vic Firth 2B sticks) in your hands today. They have sheet music, too. I don't know of any other store that sells sheet music these days. I encourage that. But you still have Sweetwater online. If you really want to shop of a musical instrument, check that out and then maybe compare with the local shops, like Music & Arts.

Ultimately, I'm relieved and glad to see Music & Arts still around. To remove music stores for musicians is like denying fashion stores for ladies. Even in this age where we can order things online, it's much better for example to pick up and play a guitar before buying it. Feel the weight, the construction while you play it. I've owned a guitar that was so cheap, I gave it to a relative. It played fine, but you could literally bend the tone by bending the neck.. by accident sometimes. But it was a Les Paul design, and it really did play fine. Let's say I've admired a sturdy neck on a guitar ever since, even the cheap Chinese one that I have (that incidentally stays in tune better than my Stratocaster). I'm glad this place is still around, they just have room for improvement in the areas of selection and price. And I hope this employee wasn't defying policy by leaving me alone when he did. I say, only present an upsell after you've established rapport with the customer, to gauge their interest. If rapport isn't happening, leave them alone and don't take it personally. That employee did the...

Undoubtedly the worst place to purchase a musical instrument for your child.

Why two stars if this is the worst place I’ve ever experienced in well over half the US? Because this negative experience was solely caused by one employee surrounded by a great depth of adequate or great employees.

My wife and grandchildren went into this business to purchase a set of relatively inexpensive drums or similar item for our granddaughter, by our granddaughter with funds she earned through work. Rather than encourage this motivated 7 year old, a so-called manager (female, Caucasian, red hair hair) belittled my grandchild as the item she wanted wasn’t “a real drum” or “would be off” or… Yes, a child was repeatedly belittled essentially for not earning enough (thinly veiled as the grandparent could pay the offset).

This is not the experience any person wants and there are plenty of music stores in the area that won’t presumably treat a customer in...

When it first opened, my youngest son started lessons. We bought the instrument and everything needed there at the store. The management was great- I can’t remember the lady’s name (reddish hair) but she was always friendly and helpful. He had an amazing amazing teacher. He loved lessons, he was shy but did really well at the recitals. Sadly, after about a year the teacher left. His replacement was friendly, but I don’t think she ever wanted to teach my son. Eventually she “broke up” with us, and told us she didn't think my son wanted to play anymore, and to go try something else maybe. This was not true and we were both confused and sad. I guess he was not up to her standards? It definitely left a sour taste in my mouth. We had spent a lot of money on lessons and the instrument. We didn’t return after that. I would probably return for my other kids in the future if they decided to play an instrument but we would not work with...